ATLANTA — Apple is promising new features to address instances of unwanted tracking through the use of its AirTag product.
One such feature Apple says it will introduce later this year would allow people who get an unwanted tracking alert to pinpoint the location of the unfamiliar AirTag. The device was designed to be attached to keys or a wallet so that the items could easily be found through an app if lost.
An 11Alive Reveal investigation in December found that a number of Atlanta residents had discovered the device was instead being used to track people, by someone placing a tag under another person's car, for instance.
RELATED: Some Atlanta residents being tracked with Apple AirTags | Here's what to do if it happens to you
11Alive Reveal Investigator Kristin Crowley reported that there had been at least eight recent police reports in the Atlanta metro area.
There have been numerous accounts across the country of people getting the unsettling alert on their iPhone that the tracking device that they had never purchased or placed anywhere - was with them.
Extra concerning is that in Georgia, it's legal to place a GPS device on someone's car as long as it's in a public setting.
In some instances, there were simple, innocent explanations for this - in a new post to the Apple Newsroom the company said they've seen the alert triggered by "borrowing someone’s keys with an AirTag attached, or when traveling in a car with a family member’s AirPods left inside," for example.
But Apple also acknowledged that "we also have seen reports of bad actors attempting to misuse AirTag for malicious or criminal purposes."
Apple said new privacy warnings would be included in an upcoming software update, in which "every user setting up their AirTag for the first time will see a message that clearly states that AirTag is meant to track their own belongings, that using AirTag to track people without consent is a crime in many regions around the world, that AirTag is designed to be detected by victims, and that law enforcement can request identifying information about the owner of the AirTag."
The company said it had also updated its unwanted tracking support article and would be specifically addressing an issue with AirPods triggering an "unknown accessory detected" alert, which Apple said was a more common issue.
The updated support article will now include"updated information on what to do after receiving an alert and "instructions for disabling an AirTag, AirPods or Find My network accessory."
People have also been advised that in addition to calling the police when they discover they're being tracked using an AirTag, they can twist off the cap and remove the battery to disable it.
Apple also said it is actively working with law enforcement on concerning cases and, when presented with a subpoena or other valid law enforcement request, can turn over data that "has been used to trace an AirTag back to the perpetrator, who was then apprehended and charged."
"Based on our knowledge and on discussions with law enforcement, incidents of AirTag misuse are rare; however, each instance is one too many," Apple's post said.
Apple also promised a number of features that will soon be available on this issue, including a display alert that will allow you to make the AirTag play a louder sound so that you can find it and an update to the unwanted tracking alert system to "notify users earlier that an unknown AirTag or Find My network accessory may be traveling with them."
For a full list of step-by-step instructions on what to do if you get a notification that you are being tracked, click here.